Mar 18 2022 to Mar 18 2022 6:30 p.m.

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Where

Bangalore International Centre

7 4th Main Rd, Stage 2, Domlur 560071

Event Description

Today, Kalki R Krishnamurthy (1899-1954) is best known for his historical fiction—Sivakamiyin Sapatham, Ponniyin Selvan and Parthiban Kanavu—recreating the glorious eras of the Pallavas and the Cholas. The mighty conquests and magnificent art and culture of these two kingly dynasties are brought to bear on contemporary Tamil self-fashioning. In a comprehensive biography of the iconic writer, Sunda (the nom-de-plume of MRM Sundaram, writer and known for his stint in the Tamil service of BBC) shows how, for Kalki, writing was an act of protest as India’s part of freedom movement, assert India’s spiritual/cultural values, and commit to Gandhian ideologies.

Not only does it reveal a writer’s central pre-occupations, the biography is a panoramic chronicle of the era in which Kalki lived.
Sunda sets Kalki’s pioneering achievements as a freedom fighter, journalist, magazine editor, political analyst, social commentator, novelist, and art critic against the backdrop of national events.

We plunge into the zeitgeist of political turmoil, social change, and reformist upheavals as Kalki did. We watch him contribute to the artistic and literary renaissance of his times, and to the growth of Tamil journalism. We observe his trust in the Mahatma, and steadfast allegiance to his mentor and leader Rajaji (1878-1972).

Sunda crafts a unique style for his narrative. First, he avoids hagiography, and relies on meticulously researched facts, a balanced vision, an objective tone, leaving readers free to absorb and judge for themselves.

Second, by quoting profusely from the prolific writer’s fiction and non-fiction, he creates a gripping first person story-within-the-story, an almost “autobiographical” account of his protagonist’s adventures in many spheres. This interweaving enables readers to follow not only the creative process of the protagonist’s mind, but also his evolving writerly skills, and maturing style.

Third, Sunda assembles a large cast, a who’s who of luminaries in every field–in Tamil Nadu and elsewhere. A medley of multiple voices – of politicians, litterateurs, fellow writers, reformists, thinkers and artists – creates the zeitgeist. The telling is sharp and piquant, offering ample space to rivals, critics and opponents to express their censorious, at times vitriolic, views.

In sum, the biography turns the story of an individual into the saga of a nation struggling to individuate itself, the journey of a writer as he records its transformations, of a dreamer who believes that writing can charge the mind, change the world.

The biography is being brought to a much larger readership through a translation into English by Dr. Gowri Ramnarayan who will be in conversation with S Theodore Baskaran accompanied by readings by Akhila Ramnarayan and music by Aishwarya Vidya Raghunath.

With Support from